One of the biggest hurdles was diaper changing, which had to be done in an incubator, hands in, only so far, working with a tiny baby who is distressed because she doesn’t want to be touched.

Ali left it to the nurses for a while who were skilled doing it.

Worry was a familiar companion. The night before Ruby was born, Ali remembers a woman coming in with all kinds of information about what was next, and lots of statistics.

“I remember her saying babies born at 27 weeks have a better outlook than babies at 24 weeks. That frightened me.”

She says the medical professionals are forthright about what’s going on.

“But they don’t have a crystal ball. Even with a normal baby, it can be two years.”

It was a happy day when she and Rod could take Ruby home, both of them full of gratitude for their medical team.

“I was just glad I could leave with her. Some people had to leave the hospital without their baby.”

Ruby had a NG (nasogastric) tube for feeding when she left and she has chronic lung disease, accompanied by a bit of a grunt and a raspiness to her breathing. She will move out of that diagnosis when her lungs grow to normal size, Ali explains.

Just last week she had the feeding tube removed, she weighs 9 lbs 4 ozs and has been doing fine.

“Rod and I are beyond happy that she has reached this milestone.”

Before Ruby made her appearance, her parents had chosen a couple of names. Her dad chose Ruby, her mom Claire.

However, when she saw the baby, Ali thought Claire was just too plain for her. Not to mention, her skin was ruby-coloured.

So Ruby Claire she is.

Ruby sleeps well at night, she’s not a fussy baby, she loves staring at her dad’s beard – in fact she loves beards in general – she kicks her little feet, she likes lying on her play mat, she loves her little swing, and she can smile.

“It’s all worth it when they smile.”

Ali and Rod would like to thank their family members for all of the help fundraising, as well as the community’s incredible support, which enabled them to spend as much time as possible together in Vancouver as a family while their daughter was in hospital.